Name: Gunter Vogel

Position: Chairperson of the board of directors of Kwatani, previously Joest

Main Activity of the Company: Established in 1976, Kwatani, previously known as Joest, is one of the largest locally owned and operated original-equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and has been supplying the African mining and industrial sectors with customised engineered vibrating equipment for 41 years

Place of Birth: Marienberg, Germany

Education: Mechanical engineering degree; MBA

First Job: Mechanical engineer at Concor Engineering

Career History: I started my career at Hunt Leuchars & Hepburn before moving to D&H Engineering and then Tongaat Hulett Engineering. In 1988, I acquired the shareholding in Joest Vibration Techniques, then a small vibrating equipment company. Today, nearly 29 years later, the company has been renamed Kwatani and become a fully independent South African OEM that is recognised as an industry leader in vibrating equipment solutions not only in South Africa, but also in Africa and beyond

Size of First Pay Package: R180 a month

First Job with Present Group: Owner and manager

Value of Assets under Your Control: About R250-million

Number of People under Your Leadership: 165

Management Style: I see myself as a participative manager

Personal Best Achievement: Bringing up my two children: my son, who runs his own water purification business, and my daughter, who heads up Kwatani

Professional Best Achievement: The acquisition of Joest Vibration Techniques in 1989 (which, at that time, was a subsidiary of Joest, of Germany, with a handful of staff and no internal technical competence) and growing the business into Kwatani

Person Who Has Had the Biggest Influence on You: My wife, Maria

Person Who Has Had the Biggest Influence on Your Career: Brian Gilbertson, as lecturer in a private business school and as head of Gencor

Person You Would Most Like to Meet: Peter Drucker

Businessperson Who Has Impressed You Most: Anton Rupert

Philosophy of Life: Pursue and love success in all you do

Biggest Ever Opportunity: Finding 30% broad-based black economic- empowerment partners for Kwatani and opening the transformation window for the company

Biggest Ever Disappointment: None

Hope for the Future: An end to State capture and that we realise higher educational standards for all citizens of South Africa

Favourite Reading: Pre-Socrates and Platonic philosophy and anthropology

Favourite TV Programme: World news (BBC and CNN) and documentaries on robotics, biochemistry three-dimensional tissue engineering, as well as new technologies in which companies like Google invest heavily

Favourite Food/ Drink: Indian chicken tikka masala/Johnnie Walker Black Label whisky

Favourite Music: Classical, jazz (Louis Armstrong era)

Favourite Sport: European soccer, cricket, rugby

Favourite Website: Google

Hobbies: 4 × 4 travel through Africa, reading, travel blog writing

Car: Mercedes-Benz S 500

Pets: Two Peekapoos

Miscellaneous Dislikes: Silly people, noisy groups of people

Favourite Other South African Company: Sibanye Gold

Favourite Foreign Company: Berkshire Hathaway

Married: To Maria, since May 18, 1966

Children: Kai and Kim

Clubs: Royal Johannesburg & Kensington Golf Club, Bryanston Country Club